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Ezra

As part of it's Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking, UN.GIFT organised screenings of several films dealing with the subject.

I opted to watch EZRA, by Nigerian director Newton Aduaka.

The secrets to success, in my opinion, are modesty and realism. Ezra fulfills both requirements. The film tells the story of young children, amongst whom is a boy called Ezra, who are kidnapped by rebels and taken into the jungle to be trained as soldiers. Several years later Ezra finds himself forced to deal with his past while facing a 'Truth and Reconciliation Commission'.

I did not know what to expect as I was not familiar with the directors work, however I was pleasantly surprised. The film is mellow and strikes the right balance between some action and story development.

There was no apparent bias. All sides in the conflict were portrayed in honesty and fairness. Unlike American films, the viewer is not goaded and encourage to generate either hate or sympathy with the protagonists through the use of emotional tricks. You are left with the freedom to make up your own mind.

So if you, like me, are sick of the fakeness and exaggeration in Hollywood films then you will really enjoy Ezra. The actors, while unknown to me suited their roles superbly, the viewer is not forced to muster all their strength, verging on exhaustion, to achieve the willing suspension of disbelief. You are not pestered with multi-millionaire actors trying to be sensitive to the lives and tragedies of normal human beings they cannot relate to.

Definitely worth watching.

Production: France /Nigeria /Austria 2007
Directed by: Newton I. Aduaka
Running time: 103min